Maid Of The Mist
by antagonistic
Summary: [TwoShot NaruSasuNaru] When a trip to Niagara Falls goes terribly wrong, strangers meet and sexualities... like Sasuke's... are questioned.
1. Accidents Happen

**_Maid of the Mist_** – A Trip to Niagara Falls  
a SasuNaruSasu Short

**Author's Note:**  
_Maid of the Mist_—just in case you don't know—is the fleet of boats that allows visitors to witness the thundering beauty of Niagara Falls up close and personal… and wet. The QEW is an expressway in Canada. I know something like this happening in real life… is… erm… highly unlikely… but hey, let a girl have some fun, yes?

**Disclaimers:  
**Naruto characters belong to Kishimoto-_sensei_. I just borrow them… without permission. _Maid of the Mist_ belongs to the Maid of the Mist Corporation (USA) and the Maid of the Mist Steamboat Company Ltd (Canada).

OoO

What was so special about the Falls?

Naruto grumbled as he tried, yet again, to fix the blue, semi-transparent plastic that was supposed to serve as some sort of raincoat. No matter what he did, he couldn't get the damn thing to stay put. He wouldn't even have bothered putting it on if Sakura-_chan_ hadn't insisted. In fact, he had half a mind to take it off right now since the wind was making him look like an oversized orange and blue balloon anyway. Forget the fact it had taken him not just a little more than ten minutes to put the thing on; and only managing to successfully to do so _after_ Shikamaru finally got sick of watching him struggle and gave him a hand—it was getting pretty annoying.

"Oh stop _fidgeting_, Naruto," Ino reprimanded, unsuccessfully taming her own raincoat. "_Do_ try to enjoy the trip?"

Naruto sighed, muttered some sort of agreement and stared at the watery mass in front of them as the _Maid of the Mist_ made its way closer to the Horseshoe Falls. Naruto was all up for taking the weekend off. Any excuse to spend any length of time with Sakura was welcome and a weekend trip to celebrate the beginning of the summer vacation was—or at least at the time it was proposed—a very exciting idea. However, Naruto wanted to go to the arcade. Not the actual bloody _Falls_.

It was just water for Pete's sake. Lots of loud, moving water.

What was so exciting about _that_!

And to top it all off, instead of kicking some ass at the arcade, he was now standing behind a relatively large group of people all crowded around the rail at the side of the boat. Suffice it to say that Naruto was incapable of seeing _anything_ clearly at the moment. It wasn't exactly Naruto's idea of _fun_. Naruto did not think the forty-five-minute wait to get on this poor excuse of a boat worth it. At all. Unfortunately, Sakura-_chan_ had insisted they all just _had_ to see the world-famous Falls up close. They did drive all the way here after all… what was a visit to Niagara Falls without actually _going_ to the Falls?

As Naruto stood there, wishing with all his might that he was somewhere else, he had only one thing to say about the great Niagara Falls—it stank. Naruto couldn't exactly place a finger on it, but it most definitely stank. It was a strange, wet… putrid scent that stuck to your nose. He made a face. He honestly had to wonder what in the hell he was doing here at all. However, Naruto's ears perked up at the beautiful sound of Sakura's gleeful squeal.

"Ooh! Look!"

Naruto smiled. Oh yeah, that was why. He grinned as he tried to make his way to the pink-haired love of his life, but only succeeded in falling flat on his butt as the boat made a sudden unexpected—albeit, it was announced—turn. Naruto cursed as he got up—God dammit! His pants were soaked!—and cursed again when he lost his balance and got jerked against the wall. Rubbing the back of his head, he mumbled. It seemed it would be rather difficult to get to Sakura with all sorts of tourists crowding around her (she'd gotten to a nice spot). Naruto groaned. It wasn't fair.

Suddenly, _Ooh_'s and _Ahh_'s were heard from the front of the boat. (They were approaching the Horseshoe Falls.) And then… spray. Fine, wet spray hit Naruto's face.

He shut his eyes.

Hmm… It… wasn't so bad, actually.

The spray felt pretty good.

The crowd that had originally stationed themselves at the back dispersed and started making their way to the front (and wettest) part of the boat. Naruto shrugged. Now, usually, he'd be one of the first to run off… however, the bustling crowd of ever-enthusiastic tourists did not induce too many feelings of excitement. He looked around and frowned to find Sakura no where to be seen.

He walked to the now vacant railings of the boat, letting spray cool his considerably hot head. To be honest, it was a relatively fine evening. Their group had opted to go for the last ride of the day, hoping that it would be a little less crowded. Oh how so totally wrong they (read: Sakura) were. Naruto sighed as he leaned against the railing, eyes still closed. The spray against his face felt nice—it was cool, and surprisingly not salty. Naruto had expected it to be so. He didn't really know _why_ he thought that… maybe it was because it _smelled_ salty.

"To the extreme left, we can see—"

Naruto tried to block out the (annoying) disembodied voice of a really sarcastic-sounding (or at least to him it sounded sarcastic) tour guide. He popped open an eye and struggled to keep it open as spray and wind attacked him mercilessly. The thundering of the Falls reverberated in his chest. He opened his other eye and turned his neck to his left. His eyes involuntarily grew wide.

Okay… so maybe… the Falls were a _little_ impressive…

Naruto looked down. White foam and bubbles danced in the water below him, aggravated by both the boat motor and the Falls itself. In a strange way, it was mesmerizing. Naruto reached out with his left hand.

What would it feel like to touch it, he wondered. It was so…

He leaned out a bit more…

… so fascinating…

He was so close to touching it… he stepped up and leaned a little further out.

Just a little… bit more…

Almost… there…

"Ah!"

OoO

Sasuke sighed, leaning against the wall of the Maid of the Mist No. 4 and watching his companions (well, most of them) shout out ecstasies about being in the presence of the oh-so-wonderful Niagara. Considering the four-and-a-half hour drive along the QEW they had to get here—and who do you think drove?—it was actually quite a disappointment.

He just wanted to go home. He didn't care if it took another four and a half frigging hours.

He was _not_ happy about staying in some cheap (-looking mind you. The actual price was still expensive—damn corporate bastards) motel.

The back of the boat began to empty as the Horseshoe Falls began to show itself. Sasuke was slightly taken aback when an unexpected gust of wind decided to hit him.

Then, spray. Merciless, wet spray… like a dog who decided to shake himself dry right in front of your newly cleaned Porsche. (Stupid dog.)

He wondered idly where all the blasted wind had come from, but all thoughts were interrupted by the merciless flapping of someone else's raincoat in his face; as if he wasn't having enough problems with his _own_ uncontrollable one without having to see everything in blue. Damn the stupid wind.

Damn the stupid raincoats.

Sure they kept him relatively drier… but they were fucking annoying. Moving away from the crowd to avoid further damage, he made his way to the presently emptier side of the boat. His back to the water, he leaned against the railing and lazily watched the excited screaming of the more enthusiastic ones up front.

He combed his hair with his fingers and sighed. He gave up long ago trying to keep his hood intact. Honestly, he was glad they didn't fit in the upper deck. If he was as soaked as he was now… how much wetter would he have been out in the open? He shut his eyes, letting the spray cool him. He threw his head back and listened to the thundering sounds of the Falls—indeed, it was fittingly called the Home of the Thunder God. It was quite an intoxicating sound; powerful, strong… He liked it. Sasuke had to admit, he had a sort of fetish for strength.

Sasuke's eyebrows furrowed as he became aware of a different sound, invading that of the Falls'.

A boat.

He popped open an eye to spot another tour boat just leaving the Horseshoe area. Taking note of the direction the boat was going, he idly concluded that it was probably from the American fleet. He was about to let his lids fall again, when something caught his eye. Leaning out, he squinted. Yup… he could see it. A blond boy, probably around his age, was leaning against the rail… rather dangerously. He smirked. The idiot. What was he trying to do anyway? He looked like a seven-year-old, fascinated with the waves or something. If he continued leaning forward like that he was going to—

Sasuke paled as he watched the blond idiot fall into the water. The sounds of the boats and the Falls drowned out the sound of what should have been a relatively loud splash. Sasuke looked around. His side of the boat was empty, much like the blond's… no one else had seen him fall over board.

"Oh shit," Sasuke cursed. "You've _got_ to be kidding me."

He watched, frantically praying that the blond would resurface… surely he was some Olympic-level swimmer… or something.

Right?

He watched… and watched… and…

Nothing.

Sasuke considered his options. He could just walk away right now… not care. He was a complete stranger, after all… And he didn't know if finding one of the guides on the boat was a good idea—did any of them actually know how to swim?—besides, what would he tell them? He looked across the water again.

He could always just wait till he got to shore… tell one of the guards _then_. Sasuke saw a small hand surface, and sink back down. _Dammit_… if he waited till he got to shore, he didn't think the idiot would survive. He wasn't surfacing. At all.

Sasuke looked around and gave up trying to get someone's attention. They were nearing the Horseshoe area now and the sound of the Falls was overwhelming. Damning life, his cursed luck and freaking conscience, he took off his shoes and socks, hoping that at least Neji would notice them, and skillfully dived head first into the water.

Thank the lords he was the school's swimming team ace.

He cursed when he swallowed a mouthful of toilet flush water (not that he'd ever tasted it). _Stupid_. He hadn't been prepared for the pressure diving so near the Falls would bring. He struggled for a bit, and kicked hard to get deeper. When he finally regained control, he looked around, trying hard to prevent his chest from exploding. His eyes stung like a bitch.

Then, he spotted it. Orange. He thanked whoever it was who possessed the boy to wear such bright and completely ridiculous clothing. Kicking hard, he swam towards the blond, lungs burning. The idiot had already passed out and was sinking. Quickly. By the time he reached him, he wasn't sure how much longer his lungs were going to hold out.

He could feel the pressure building with every stroke he made.

He grabbed the unconscious boy from behind, using for the first time ever his life-guard training.

A few painful seconds—seconds which felt like years to Sasuke—later, he broke the surface of the water and panted for air. Looking around, he knew he was nearer to the Falls than it was safe; he was barely able to keep afloat with the white foam all around him. Then, it came crashing down on him that no one could possibly see them except from above… and from that angle—he looked up—they were just tiny dots. Panic soon formed in his gut. And the fact that his boat was about five zillion yards away did not help.

Just to his right, he spotted a small opening.

He needed somewhere to deposit his load—he looked down at the unconscious blond—or he would seriously sink and drown with the idiot. One too many minutes later, he had managed to push the boy up into the entrance—god dammit, he was frigging heavy—and had hoisted himself up as well, with much less difficulty. He looked around.

For reasons unknown to him, in _here_ seemed a lot wetter than out _there_.

He looked at the blond. But, now was not the time to think about such things. He dragged the boy—now about ten million times heavier than he was in the water—further into the cave and away from the water. Much to his dismay, said boy was not rousing.

Sasuke pressed his ear onto the boy's chest.

The boy was not breathing.

"Shit," he whispered. This was not good.

He shook the boy's shoulders, and slapped his face. No reaction.

Sasuke, once again, considered his options. _Well, at least he's not… ugly_. He sighed.

To say that he regretted his form of action was akin to saying that the creation of the universe was a very small deal.

OoO

Naruto was vaguely aware of something warm above him.

The water was gone—the painful, hard… heavy water was gone.

Suddenly, he felt something against his lips. He furrowed his eyebrows—it tasted like… well… he wasn't so sure. It tasted almost like nothing, really… but at the same time, it tasted like… something. But what was it? And what was it do—

Naruto opened an eye and nearly died when he saw a black-haired boy leaning into him, eyes closed, hands on his chest.

He did what instinct dictated and that was to plant a nice punch into the bastard's right cheek.

"Fuck!" he heard the bastard curse as Naruto's punch sent him careening away from him.

"Help!" Naruto screamed, forgetting that he sounded embarrassingly weak. "I'm being molested! Help!"

Naruto jumped up from his uncomfortable position on the ground and raised his guard, like a boxer. He watched as the boy massaged his cheek, leaning against a rocky wall and looked at him with daggers in his eyes.

"You're alive," the black-haired boy said. "Good. Now I can kill you."

Naruto panicked. The boy did not look weak. He was pretty sure he could handle him but… he looked around.

"Where the fuck is this!"

It was wet, damp and absolutely disgusting. The stench of the Falls was magnified ten times inside this cramp, rocky… _cave_! Naruto's jaw dropped as he looked out what appeared to be the only entrance (and therefore, only exit). Then, realization slowly dawned on him.

He looked at the bastard again.

"I—" he remembered swallowing a shit-load of water, "You—Did you _save_ me?"

The other boy stood up, and glared at him. "Way to go, genius."

He was a lot stupider than he initially thought. Sure, he knew someone had to be _pretty_ idiotic to actually fall off a boat like this one did… but this…? This was ridiculous, that's what _this_ was.

He sat down, cross-legged and ignored the blond who was looking around like a lost rabbit. Touching his face, he moaned. _God, that's gonna hurt tomorrow morning_. He didn't deserve this. Uchiha Sasuke was a good person, wasn't he? He didn't deserve this punishment.

Suddenly, he noticed motion above him. Looking up, he saw the blond sticking his arm out.

"I'm, uhm," he said, "sorry… about that…"

Sasuke stared at the hand.

"And, uh, thanks…"

Sasuke looked him in the eye, and pointedly looked away. What did he get for risking his life to save this idiot—something he still didn't quite understand—what? A bloody punch, that's what. And he had the nerve to say, "Oops, I'm sorry…"

"Hey—"

Of all the impertinent and…

"Hey, you—"

… insolent and idiotic…

"Hey, _teme_," Sasuke looked up to see a glaring blond. What, now, _he_ was mad? "I said: I'm sorry."

Sasuke rolled his eyes. "It's pretty obvious I'm ignoring you, _dobe_."

"What did you call me!"

"Oh, you're deaf _too_?"

"_Teme_—!"

Sasuke had to smirk. The guy was practically growing fangs in his anger. Great… he had anger management issues too. Sasuke sighed as he tried to figure out what possessed him to do something as stupid as this. It wasn't exactly like him.

"I'm trying to talk to you, _teme_!"

Sasuke rubbed his temple.

"Seriously, you're over-using the word. Can't you think of anything more creative than '_teme_', _usuratonkachi_?"

The blond grabbed him by the collar, murder in his eyes. He raised an eyebrow, as if to mock him. Sasuke wasn't afraid of picking a fight with the idiot… regardless of the fact that he was still exhausted from the swim. But, like hell would he let the blond find _that_ out. Suddenly, the blond let go of him—after causing considerable pain in Sasuke's neck area—and stalked off to the other side of the cave… which wasn't much really considering how tiny the place was.

So what he had saved him? Did the bastard have the _right_ to act so god damn high-and-mighty? It was an _accident_. A reflex… How was he supposed to know he was giving him CPR? Seriously?

Naruto sighed as he sat down a few feet away from the black-haired stranger. His first kiss… gone. Taken cruelly—forget the fact it had saved his life—by a complete stranger who was… _a guy_. Naruto held back a moan of pain. A _guy_. He felt like crying.

Or puking. Either one.

It was kind of depressing actually; he'd always imagined his first kiss to be, like, with Sakura… or something. He'd always pictured it. A beach… the cooling sunset, wine, birds singing (and not squawking) in the horizon… the rays reflecting on Sakura's beautiful and flawless skin, as well as accenting her magnificent hair… her goddess-like body leaning against his as they watched boats sail away in the distance… a slug crawling along the slender stem of a rose…

Wait… say what?

Naruto shook his head. It was probably the water still gurgling inside him. Oh god… he didn't want to imagine what else he'd swallowed…_ like a slug crawling against_… where was the toilet bowl when you needed one, freaking hell!

He looked outside again, a feeling of dread entering his stomach as he watched the darkening sky darken even further. The little light they had to begin with was slowly disappearing and making way to darkness… and he didn't think that was a good thing. They needed to get out of here. His hands flew to his shoulders. They were gonna freeze.

Oh how Naruto wanted to go home.

Sasuke sighed as he looked at the mess his phone was. Of course, it wasn't water-proof. He hadn't counted on jumping into lakes and rivers or waterfalls when he bought it. So, scratch the idea of calling for help. They just had to rely on someone from either of their parties to notice they were missing and _hopefully_ not leave without them.

He wasn't so sure Gaara would care much… but he hoped at least Hinata, Neji's cousin, would.

Sasuke held the edge of his shirt and tried to wring it dry. Of course, he didn't succeed. _Damn_. The adrenaline rush was finally fading and the fact that the water was pretty damn cold and icy was starting to sink in.

Looking to his right, he saw the _dobe_ shivering. He sighed.

"You should take at least your shirt off," he said matter-of-factly, taking his own off.

"What did you—"

Naruto stared as the black-haired boy took his shirt off.

"Argh!" he jumped. "What the fuck are you doing!"

The bastard looked at him with a raised eyebrow. "Taking my shirt off?"

"Why!"

"Because… it's… wet…?"

"Look," he said, gulping. _Shit, those are nice pecs_. "I already have someone I like, so…"

Sasuke looked at him disbelievingly. "What?"

The idiot was looking at him with suspicion—yeah, that's right _suspicion_—in his eyes.

"I said," the blond gulped, "I already have someone I like, so, I can't, like—"

Sasuke's eyes grew wide.

"Besides, I don't swing that way so—"

"Wait," he interrupted. "What in the _hell_ are you talking about?"

The blond paused and scratched the back of his head.

"I'm saying," Sasuke could taste the awkwardness in the air. "I'm not gay… so…"

Sasuke almost laughed.

Naruto jumped back a step—it was a reflex—when the black-haired stranger stood up. He had to admit, the guy really did keep in shape. Probably an athlete… and considering the debt he owed him, a swimmer. Naruto was an athlete himself, so he'd spent a fair amount of time in the weight room… however; those were some pretty damn strong-looking shoulders.

And the muscles along those arms… They weren't big or obstructive, if anything, his arms looked small and wiry. _But_, they were very obviously well-built. A hidden sort of strength.

Okay, originally, Naruto figured he would be able to defend himself if the psycho did anything… but, he gulped… he didn't expect the guy to be this strong. When he'd grabbed him earlier, he could've slugged him, but it wouldn't have felt right. He could feel his uneven breathing, like the guy had just finished running five miles or something.

That reminded Naruto where he was and why he was still alive.

Then again, no… what was he talking about? Of course he would be able to defeat him (if the time came and he decided to do the nasty)… he's Uzumaki Naruto for crying out loud—seventeen-year-old soon-to-be American amateur kickboxing champion. And this guy? What was he? A swimmer? Pfft…

"Hate to break it to you," the black-haired boy said, looking for a place to hang his black navy blue shirt up, "but, you're not my type."

Naruto's mind went on a reeling stop.

Wait… not his type? What?

"I'm… not?"

What was he—

_Oh my god!_ Not even a gay guy was interested in him! No wonder Sakura wouldn't look twice at him! Naruto realized his impending doom… if he couldn't even get this pervert interested or the least bit attracted to him, what hope did he have in the future of winning _girls_? His love life—did he even have on to begin with?—was over! (Before it even began!)

So, the idiot was retarded too.

Sasuke gave up trying to find someplace to dry his wet shirt. _Damn, it's getting cold._ He could not believe he'd be spending the next while—and judging with how quickly it was darkening outside, the whole night—with an idiotic retard who had _gender issues_ among a numerous other things.

_No, I am not interested in you… No, you are not my type… You want to know why?_

"Hey," the blond insisted. "Why not?"

_Because I'm straight, idiot._

Instead of replying, however, Sasuke merely chose to smirk. The idiot was probably torn, confused… probably in that stage where people try to figure out whether they're straight or gay… or something like that; a stage Sasuke cleared when he was eight.

_Besides, even if I _were_ gay, I wouldn't do anything to someone like you_.

Not that the idiot wasn't good-looking or anything. He had to admit, he had his own charm… a cute, sort of idiotic charm. He was saying this as a completely objective judge, of course. He wasn't ignorant; he knew what was considered good-looking and what was not. For example, he knew _he_ was relatively handsome—not that he actually cared, he was no narcissist, thank you—and he knew that was why a boat-load of girls would flirt with him constantly. Regardless of the fact that he was Asian.

Therefore, he knew for a fact that other girls would certainly be attracted to this _usuratonkachi_, regardless of his stupidity. Someone like… Hinata… for example, would definitely find him interesting.

Maybe Gaara, too.

But really, he was such a stupid idiot… a stupidiot.

Naruto glared. _God, it was cold_. The bastard was chuckling menacingly to himself now. What was he thinking? And, seriously, what was not attractive about him? I wasn't fair. Things never went his way.

Not that he'd wanted to be raped or something.

That wasn't the point.

The point was that _no one_ loved him. It was kind of depressing.

He sat down on the wet ground and shivered. The bastard was probably right, too—great, a smartass—he could feel his soaked shirt sticking to his skin and every time a gust of wind from the Falls entered the small cave, it chilled him to the bone. But, like hell would he take his shirt off in front of a gay pervert… regardless of the fact that he wasn't interested in him (here, Naruto sniffled)… he _knew_ real gay perverts… and really, Kiba was kind of scary whenever he was horny.

Of course, he had Shino for that… but _still_.

Naruto yawned. He was getting kind of tired.

"You better not sleep with that shirt on," he heard the bastard say. Naruto looked at him. "You'll die."

Naruto tried wringing his shirt dry. "No, seriously," the bastard continued. "You will." Argh… _smartass_.

Naruto watched as the black-haired boy used his shirt as a cushion and settled himself down on a flat—if you can even call it that, this cave thing wasn't exactly the best place to take a nap—surface of rock.

"What are you—"

"Obviously we won't be able to have a coherent conversation." Naruto could've sworn he had just been dissed.

"Wait—"

"And I cannot contact civilization at the moment; and considering how dark it is outside, the place is probably closed. We won't hear anything from anyone until tomorrow…"

"So, what should I—"

"Try to shut up and get some sleep. I'm tired from lugging your fat ass around, and—"

"_Teme_, what did you say!" What _was_ it with the bastard, why was he always picking on him, god dammit!

Why was he always making those cheap shots? Maybe because the blond's reactions were all so predictable and deliciously amusing. Ah well… after tomorrow, he'd never hear from the blond again, so it mattered not what he thought of him.

Though, he had to admit… verbally sparring like this—regardless of how victory was so one-sided—felt strangely familiar.

Really, familiar.

"Okay, look, _dobe_," he said, impatiently, "I'm gonna try and get some sleep… you… shut up. Okay?"

And with that, Sasuke tried his best to find a comfortable position, a feat which was near impossible and incredibly difficult.

"_O-oi_! _Teme_!" Naruto thought about getting up and shaking him. The guy just kept insulting him, honestly. But… Naruto knew he was probably exhausted. He hated to say this… but… he did owe the bastard his life. He watched the black-haired boy, his back turned against him, breathe.

Naruto sighed.

He wasn't so sure he'd be able to get any sleep tonight. It was wet, damp, humid, soggy… wait, no… those all meant the same thing…

He lay down on a pointy rock and cursed. _What the fucking hell…_ Ah well, at least he was alive, right? Besides, no matter how much of a bastard the bastard was… he was at least a decent guy.

Naruto could forgive the fact that he was gay…

No matter how scary it was.

Maybe.

OoO

"_Anno ne, anno ne_," an annoying voice interrupted the beautiful silence of the night. "Are you awake?"

Sasuke cursed. "I am _now_."

What was this? Daycare? He suddenly felt as if he was caring for a five-year-old. Good heavens.

"I have a question," continued the irritating voice, apparently not sensing the homicidal quality of his tone.

Sasuke didn't respond.

"Uhm," the annoying voice persisted. Sasuke moaned. Somewhere in his half-asleep mind he registered the thoughts, _Must Kill Him… Must Kill Him…_ "What's it like being gay?"

That jerked Sasuke awake. "Wh-what!"

"I said," the idiotic voice said, slightly louder, "what's it like being gay? Like, being attracted to other guys and stuff…"

Sasuke's eyes were wide open, staring at the blackness above him. He could not _believe_ he was having this conversation.

"I'm not gay, dammit," he said irritably. Leave him alone now, _please_.

There was a pause. "You… aren't?"

Sasuke sighed impatiently.

"Are you in denial or something?"

Sasuke wanted to slam his head against a rock. The blond's… not his.

"No, I'm not."

"Oh," the voice said, something resembling realization entering its tone, "so… you're bi?"

Sasuke gave up.

"Yeah, yeah," he said, turning over to his side wishing the annoying voice be gone. "That's it. I'm bisexual. Now, sleep."

"So," Argh… the voice wasn't _stopping_. "How'd you figure it out?"

"Figure what out?" Sasuke sighed.

"That you were into both guys and girls."

A silence.

"I said," the blond insisted, probably thinking Sasuke hadn't heard him… the thought that Sasuke was _ignoring_ him probably not entering that miniscule brain of his. "How did you—"

"I flipped a coin."

Another silence.

The voice wasn't saying anything… Sasuke sighed on the inside.

Ahh… finally… peace…

"You serious?"

Sasuke knocked his head against the wall.

OoO


	2. Unexpected Circumstances

**_Maid of the Mist_** – A Trip to Niagara Falls  
a SasuNaruSasu Short

**Disclaimers:  
**Naruto characters belong to Kishimoto-_sensei_. _StarCraft_ (and everything related to it) belongs to _Blizzard Entertainment_. Just in case you were wondering, _StarCraft_ is a kickass—albeit, now a bit old—RTS (real-time strategy) game. You know _WarCraft_? Well, it's the same thing, only futuristic and it takes place in outer space. If you don't know _WarCraft_… forget it. Seriously.

OoO

Naruto heard a strange cracking sound, but ignored it.

Flipped a coin, huh? He didn't think that actually worked… So… what…? Heads, and he's gay; tails, and he's straight… and when he flipped it, it landed standing up? (Was that even possible?)

Interesting…

Naruto sighed. He was cold. He, being the stubborn—no, strong-willed—person that he was, still hadn't taken his shirt off.

He didn't know why, it just didn't feel right. He didn't really think there was an actual reason.

All he knew was that now… he was… cold. Really, really cold.

And because of that, a strange instinct told him not to fall asleep. He felt like it would be a bad thing if he fell asleep… falling asleep when he was this cold couldn't possibly be a good thing because… because… well… because…

Naruto yawned.

The bastard stopped talking again. Fine, he'll just keep _himself_ company. He'll just… talk… to…

Uh… what was he saying?

But, see, he was so tired… so tired. It'd been a long day after all.

And, besides, it'd taken him ages to finally defeat Shikamaru in… uh… that game… thing…

… at that place where there were a lot of… game…

… thingies…

And, really, he was such a bastard, that… bastard. Wasn't he?

He was.

Why did he always have to, like, uh… pick on him…

He reminded him of that… that… person… who… always did the same—

Ooh… was that a slug?

_A slug crawling along the slender stem of a rose_…

He liked slugs… that Naruto did.

Maybe.

_ What do you _mean_ Zergs are cheap!_

_ I mean exactly that, _dobe

Sasuke woke up again, this time to the sound of someone pathetically shivering. It took a while for his mind to return from the sweet depths of oblivion enough so he could think straight.

Shivering and teeth-chattering meant… what, again?

Oh right. It meant that someone was cold. _He_ wasn't shivering… so the only other person that was—

"Shit," he sat straight up, afraid of finding what he was pretty sure he would find. Turning to his right, his face paled.

"I _told_ you to take the fucking shirt off, _dobe_!"

Sasuke crawled over to the idiotic blond. A once-over was enough to tell Sasuke the stupidiot was freezing, probably close to hypothermia. _And_, the idiot had fallen asleep. Was there another word for idiot, god dammit?

He tried to shake the blond awake, but nothing succeeded. Neither did slapping or rock-throwing.

Sasuke sighed and considered his options.

Was he going to regret doing what he figured was the only thing he could do?

However… if the idiot died on him now… what would have been the whole point of jumping off Maid of the Mist No. 4 to rescue said idiot? He looked down at the blond whose lips were turning a disturbing shade of blue and who was pitifully shaking like a leaf. (Did leaves actually "shake"? It's actually a rather interesting expression, if one thought about it… not that now was the time to be thinking of such things.)

The idiot was going to die.

Sasuke reached out and held the edge of the blond's shirt. Since he _was_ trying to wake the idiot up, he didn't bother being careful when pulled it over his head. _Hmm… nice pecs_. The guy apparently kept in shape. A hand touched the strong chest and Sasuke's heart involuntarily leapt to his throat. It was as cold as ice. That, and the blond's heartbeat was steadily getting slower and slower.

He sighed once again. The idiot was getting to be a lot more troublesome than he was worth.

Which was nothing.

Anyway…first, he had to warm him up. Somehow.

Sasuke had a foreboding feeling that he was going to regret this…

Really, what had he _ever_ done to deserve such… such… whatever it was…?

But he was going to do it, wasn't he?

Damn you, stupid conscience. Why are you always around when you're not needed? (And conveniently missing when you _are_?)

He gingerly lifted the blond and forced him to sit up. Sasuke heard some nonsensical mumbling coming from the idiot… but that was all. He positioned himself behind him and let the blond lean on his back, hoping that his body warmth would be somehow enough. It took a lot of willpower not to jump away from the iciness that made contact with his skin.

_Shit_, he was cold.

The blond's back was really, very cold. Too cold.

It was so cold… so… cold…

Naruto was teetering along that gray space—the space between consciousness and unconsciousness… he wasn't thinking straight and he couldn't move, but he was conscious enough to feel cold. That place sucked… he usually experienced it those three seconds when his opponent socked him one and he fell to the ground. Usually, he jumped right back up… but this, this one was different.

His entire body felt heavy. He was so sleepy; his eyelids wouldn't even open no matter how much he willed them to. He was so tired… and so cold… he couldn't move. He wanted to and didn't want to at the same time.

_Slugs…_

His life started flashing before his eyes, regardless of the fact that he saw nothing but black.

_ Terran—that's the race _men_ use. Zergs are easily manipulated and utilized. Cheap._

_ And, what? The Terrans are more complicated? Wouldn't that make them more… uh… _not_ practical!_

_ You mean _im_practical?_

Hmm… funny… why was he recalling _that_ conversation with—

Suddenly, he started feeling something. Something that felt vaguely familiar… something like…

Warmth.

_Warm?_ Somewhere in Naruto's lead-heavy brain, he knew that "warmth" equaled "good" in the situation he was in; and so, his body acted on what was only natural… and that was to reach for that warm something behind him…

Sasuke nearly jumped when he felt the _dobe_ stir. For one fruitless moment, he thought the blond had come to… then he realized his mistake. Oh how cruel reality was.

Goose bumps crawled along his skin as the idiot turned around, engulfing him in an embrace of sorts, apparently (instinctively) seeking more warmth. A coarse and callused hand rested on his bare chest and Sasuke gulped.

If he were completely honest, Sasuke wasn't exactly the kind of person who totally adored physical contact of any sort—other than, you know, that undeniably nice feeling the breaking of bone brought when someone deserved a nice good kick in the nose—in fact, it would be safe to say that… well… he… _despised_ being touched.

No, he did not have a phobia.

He had gone out with a couple of girls here and there (he was actually pretty popular at school), and he wasn't, to say the least, a virgin. But he preferred to keep physical contact to a bare minimum… particularly with guys who had sexuality issues.

Not that… he was homophobic… or anything.

And so, the way he was being held right now—well, let's just say it wasn't exactly a familiar sensation. And gosh, was he _cold_. It took all of Sasuke's willpower and energy not to shrink away from the icy (yet indisputably muscular) chest that now pressed against his bare back.

The Uchiha gasped when the blond's grip suddenly tightened, bringing the two of them closer together, with the idiot's face resting on the nape of Sasuke's neck. He could feel the idiot's steady, yet laboured, breathing; every time it brushed against his skin, his hair would stand on end. Sasuke gulped. He… did not like this… not one bit.

"_O-oi_," he ventured, "_d-dobe_. You alive?"

He heard a mumble that sounded remotely like _Hmm… warm…_

Sasuke sighed. Would he be forced to stay like this the whole night? The idiot had an iron grip.

Suddenly, he felt something wet pressing against his back. It was then that he realized the blond had crawled to his knees to get a better angle—the really strange thing was that, well, the blond was still _unconscious_. Looking down, he realized his own pants were soaked and the only reason he'd stopped noticing that was because his legs were numb with cold. He knew he probably should do something to remedy the situation… but… he couldn't exactly _move_ with the way the blond was clinging on to him—and breathing on him, among other things—for dear life. Then again, he couldn't exactly let the idiot do as he pleased—

When the blond's hands started wandering, he decided that he _really_ needed to do something about their current position.

He was _not_ going to get felt up by an unconscious idiot, heck no.

Especially one who wasn't sure if he was gay or not.

Sasuke turned around and wondered if the blond's legs were as numb as his… the blond probably had it worse since he'd been freezing a better part of the evening. He sighed and cursed his good nature.

He roughly freed his arms from the blond's grip—not without a little difficultly and vainly hoping he would wake up—and unzipped his soaked jeans, sliding them off his numb legs. Turning around, he held the blond so he wouldn't hit his head on the hard, rocky ground—though, admittedly, that would have felt really nice to do—and used his right hand to do the same to him. He tossed the idiot's jeans next to his and looping his elbows under the blond's armpits, Sasuke maneuvered the blond and himself so that the idiot was leaning his back against Sasuke's chest and his head was resting on his right shoulder; no more breathing against his neck and definitely no more _touching_. He almost breathed a sigh of relief.

Sasuke's hands rested on the ground behind him to help him balance against the weight that was now against him—a weight he wasn't familiar with, and he tentatively rubbed his legs against the blond's icy cold ones, hoping the friction would bring some warmth… to both parties. His ministrations were not in vain, and eventually even Sasuke could feel the benefits of sharing body warmth with the blond. The idiot wasn't so icy anymore, at least… and this was the best he could do with the lack of blankets.

_ I'm telling you, man, Zergs are _so_ totally the way to go._

_ You're only saying that because you're _stupiddobe

Naruto's consciousness slowly returned from hovering between the void, and with it came his senses. His eyes blinked open—he could see darkness, absolute darkness. Then, he could smell the putrid scent of the cave—ah, right. He was in a cave—and hear the raging sound of the undying falls… and feel… a steady heartbeat—his?—beating against… his back?—Nope, not his… wait a minute. Naruto blinked into the night again. _Huh?_

After a while, he realized he could smell something else as well—something… different. And he _heard_ something else, too… the sound of someone breathing… someone nearby. As in, right against his left ear.

His eyes eventually adjusted to the darkness and he realized that he wasn't alone.

He paled when he looked down and discovered his state of undress… and the fact that his legs were currently tangled up with someone else's. He gulped, afraid of what he would find if he turned his head. He was leaning on something warm and a little too soft to be rock, and he wasn't entirely sure he wanted to know what it was.

_ Hey! Isn't that… uh… rebundant… or something?_

_ It's _redundantusuratonkachi. _Didn't think you'd notice._

Sasuke woke when the idiot suddenly moved. It was a slight movement, barely noticeable… but still a movement. In his currently rather embarrassing position, every slight movement made by the blond—from his originally laboured breathing, to suddenly erratic heartbeat—was noticeable.

Sasuke chose not to move, well aware of what must be going though the idiot's (perverted) mind right about now…

Admittedly, the whole thing was a little awkward, to say the least. But it was for survival, for heaven's sake. _Survival_.

If the stupidiot began thinking indecent thoughts and started being all—

He felt the blond fidget. Sasuke sighed.

Oh dear, it was going to be a long night.

"Wh-what did you do to me?" was all Naruto could say. In fact, it was really a mere whisper.

Uzumaki Naruto, for the very first time in his life, was terrified.

He felt the black-haired boy sigh again.

"What do you mean, what?"

"You know exactly what I'm talking about," Naruto retorted, starting to get mad, "you pervert."

He felt the other boy chuckle, "You're the only one around here who's thinking… anything."

Naruto felt himself blush. Well, it was a blush as far as men go.

And Naruto was a man, and this boy was a man. And… really… the position they were in… it was just not normal for men.

"Who's the real pervert?"

Naruto really wanted to sock the bastard one.

Yup, Sasuke knew it.

The idiot was thinking dirty thoughts already. It was almost ridiculous really.

He sighed. It was going to be a long, long night.

Naruto tried to wring himself free. To say he was freaked out, was… well… an understatement beyond understatements.

"Stop moving, _dobe_," the black-haired boy hissed, his breath touching his skin and making his heart race—why, Naruto wasn't sure. He figured it was due to anger and complete resentment. Yeah, that must be it. "And really, try to get some sleep."

Sasuke would be lying to himself if he said he would be able to sleep in the position he was in.

But, hell… he wasn't about to let the boy go. He was too warm.

"Don't… do anything… to me…" was what the blond said.

"Like," the black-haired boy scoffed, "I'm interested in someone like you?"

Naruto cursed, fighting back his growing blush and hating himself for wanting to stay spooned to the bastard like he was now.

He had to admit, though he detested the fact.

It was rather warm.

But like hell was he ever going to fall asleep.

Like… hell was he… going to—

OoO

"Naruto!"

Someone was calling his name.

"Oh my god!" it wasn't stopping—leave him _alone_… he was sleepy!—"Naruto! Wake up!"

Naruto slowly became aware of someone shaking him awake.

_ Won't be online for a while, _dobe_. Go bother someone else while I'm gone._

"Sa-Sasuke!"

Naruto sat up, eyes wide, breathing hard. _What… the…_

"Oh!" Sakura embraced him, tears in her eyes. "Naruto! We were so worried about you! When you suddenly vanished yesterday and when you weren't at the hotel… we didn't know what to do!"

"Sa-Sakura?"

Ino, who was standing nearby, next to Shikamaru, regarded Naruto. "Sasuke? Was that his name?"

Naruto blinked. "Who?"

"The guy who saved you, of course."

"What?"

Shikamaru stared. "Don't tell me you don't even know his name. Not that Ino has to even know—she has no pure intentions. But _you_, at the very least, could _thank_ him for saving your life."

Naruto blinked. Saved his li—

And it all came rushing back… the black-haired boy… the…

Naruto gasped.

"Naruto!" Sakura looked concerned. "Are you okay? You're all red! Oh my god! What if you have a fever! I can't believe you slept in your wet clothes!" As expected from an intern at the local hospital.

He looked down, still blushing, only to be completely surprised to find that he was fully clothed; a state in which he did not have any memory of being in…

"Ha!" Ino was saying, though Naruto wasn't really paying attention—he had other things rushing through his head. "_I_ don't have pure intentions? How about Sakura's blatant flirting with that lifeguard person?"

"Kakashi and I were just _talking_, seriously, Ino."

"Kakashi? First name basis already?"

"He's too old for me."

"You were doing enough flirting on your own, Ino," Shikamaru interjected. "Was it really difficult to tell that the black-haired guy was uninterested?"

"Pfft," Ino huffed. "At least I didn't flirt with someone who could possibly be old enough to be my father. Did you _see _all that white hair, for crying out loud!"

"I think he just dyed it," Sakura pointed out.

"That's still gross."

"He's better than that fuzzy-eyebrowed dude from that Canadian's group, though," Kiba said, walking over to the group, Shino right behind. Looking at Naruto, he raised an eyebrow. "You still alive there, foxy?"

Naruto looked up. "Canadian?"

Kiba laughed. "Yeah, that surly, black-haired guy—"

"—the guy who saved your life, and the guy Ino couldn't seem to stop ogling," Shikamaru completed Kiba's sentence.

"You're one to talk," Ino seemed to have had it. "The way you and that blonde were going at it… it almost felt like there was _chemistry_. God forbid."

"Temari is too troublesome of a woman for me, Ino."

"Ah," she said, looking irritated. "You're only going out with me because I'm _less_ 'troublesome'?"

Naruto ignored the two squabbling lovers and turned his attention towards Kiba. "That Canadian guy… where is he?"

Kiba blinked. "You don't know his name?"

Naruto looked away, "No."

"Damn," Kiba laughed. "I wanted to ask him for his name to thank him, but figured I might as well ask _you_… since… you know… the guy looked pretty anal."

Naruto ignored Kiba's choice of words.

"Where is he?" He needed to talk to him. Naruto wanted to talk to him.

"Gone, of course."

Naruto blinked. He suddenly didn't feel very good.

After looking at Naruto for a few moments, Shino pointed across the lake. "He lives over there, Naruto."

OoO

_ Whatever, dude. I'm going away for the weekend too anyway._

Uchiha Sasuke was tired. Exhausted, even.

It had been a long weekend… a very long one, and indeed, he was glad for the summer holidays. At least now, the moment he got home, he'd be free to collapse on his warm and comfortable bed and sleep the hours away…

… hoping beyond hope that he didn't dream or remember anything… indecent.

Sasuke sighed as he continued his lonely drive along Highway 401.

He'd just finished dropping off the rest of his friends, and the carpool was broken up… each one returning to their own lives. Sasuke returning to his.

He just wanted to go home and forget about everything that happened that weekend.

_Everything_.

In any case, one truth he was more than well aware of was the fact that he hadn't slept (at least, not much) for the past 48 hours and driving around right now was actually a very dangerous feat considering how droopy his eyes were getting.

The Uchiha sighed. That morning had been hell. As in, quite literally. He was willing to bet his pretty little Porsche that if he were to die right now and go to hell, he'd be reliving that morning for all eternity… and he was suddenly really glad to be alive.

In fact, he had never appreciated life more than he did just then.

Naturally he hadn't managed to fall asleep after… uh, that little experience. The blond had, though. And admittedly, Sasuke couldn't blame him. The blond _was_ the one who suffered the most—

—regardless of the fact that he had been a complete and utter _idiot_ who was more annoying than Lee picking a fight every five seconds.

Sasuke sighed.

Anyway, that morning, as soon as light started peeking from under the horizon, he had taken the sleeping blond (who slept like a bloody log) and dressed him, after failing to wake him.

Seriously, if they were going to get rescued, like hell would Sasuke allow anyone to see either of them in such a state of undress (not that anyone would think anything had happened—after all, Sasuke was the straightest guy around); it was just a little too… embarrassing. And awkward.

But man, the _dobe_ was freaking heavy.

And it felt just a little weird to be dressing him.

For some strange unknown reason, he couldn't help but be gentle. It felt like something would've broken if he'd woken the blond suddenly and given him a fright.

Ah, of course.

The peace.

Anyway, he hadn't felt like jumping out into the water again and so he waited near the entrance of the cave for someone, anyone, to come around. Needless to say, the sound of an approaching motorboat was really more than very welcome to the Uchiha. However, the fact that said motorboat would include people other than Hyuuga Neji and his cousin, was something he hadn't counted on.

That Yamanaka-whatever-it-was girl was rather extremely annoying; the way she'd twirl her long pale blonde hair around? What was she? In some sort of shampoo commercial?

And he found the fact that Hinata seemed a little _too_ concerned about his blond charge just a little too much. Neji looked like he minded just a little too. Unfortunately, Hinata didn't seem to notice.

And when he thought the night before that Gaara would be interested… he was really actually half-joking…

_The night before_… Sasuke involuntarily shuddered.

The Night Before was something he didn't exactly want to think about.

Sort of.

OoO

Naruto stared at the blue sky in Shikamaru's car as the four of them (Ino, Sakura, Shikamaru and himself) drove home. The two lovers were up front, Ino doing her usual nagging. Though it may not really seem like it on the outside, the two of them were actually pretty close and very much in love.

The fact alone that Shikamaru was going out with anyone was proof enough that he cared very deeply for the dominating blonde. Naturally, of course, it had been Ino who had initiated the relationship… but really, that was unimportant.

Sighing, he concentrated his attentions towards the sleeping pink-haired girl beside him. Sakura had fallen into a light sleep and was leaning on his right shoulder.

Now, usually, Naruto's lower stomach would be doing summersaults by now… but… strangely enough… it wasn't.

Naruto couldn't exactly pinpoint what it was, but something definitely changed inside him. Thing was, he wasn't sure of anything anymore. Like, he wasn't sure why he desperately wanted to talk to Him. To ask Him, what in the _fucking hell_ happened.

And how in the hell did he manage to fall asleep in that position!

After all, it wasn't… all _that_… comfortable… sleeping next to, or rather _on_… Naruto sighed in frustration.

He wasn't so sure why he didn't feel disgusted with himself either.

He wasn't so sure why he really, really felt like he wanted to punch that annoying grin off that bastard's face when, really, the bastard wasn't worth two seconds of his precious time.

He wasn't so sure why… why in the freaking god damn hell he was actually _disappointed_ when he found out the guy lived in another country… another freaking time zone for all he knew, even.

_And_, he wasn't so sure why the bastard felt so… so… _familiar_.

In any case, all Naruto was sure of was that he wanted to go home, and he wanted to go home _now_.

He wanted to collapse on his orange bed and be dead to the world for the next couple of days…

_ You seriously talk too much, _dobe_. Do you not have any real friends? Leave me alone. You'll never know how I feel._

… and maybe go online.

There was someone he _really_ had to talk to.

He didn't know why, but he felt as if an old online friend of his definitely _had_ to hear this.

OoO

Sasuke turned his key and opened the door to his quiet apartment.

"_Tadaima_," he whispered to no one in particular, feeling a familiar pang when no one answered.

_ Dude, you talk as if you're the only one who lives alone. That hurts._

Sasuke wanted nothing more than to…

…than to…

Actually, Sasuke wasn't sure what he wanted to do.

Originally, he'd wanted to go to sleep, or rest, or something…

… but doing so would mean becoming idle for a few hours and thus submit his brain into being allowed to remember things it wasn't supposed to. He sighed. Something was _definitely_ fucked up around here.

Walking to his room, he caught sight of the computer he'd left untouched for the past couple of days. Something resembling an idea hit him.

_ It's not like my family's around either_.

Perhaps he could go online… and have an, admittedly, long-awaited chat with an online friend of his.

Sasuke chuckled.

Idly, he wondered what Naruto would say if he told him about this weekend's events. The guy would probably freak out. Sasuke was pretty sure he was a sort of homophobe, if the way he talked about his friends was any indication. And, though The Uchiha'd never actually _seen_ the boy, he could pretty much imagine an oaf falling off his computer chair in shock.

It was a fairly amusing scene to imagine.

He wondered if he had blond hair just like—

Sasuke coughed, seating himself in front of his computer.

Naruto—or at least, that's what the idiot had told him his name was. Of course, no one can really be sure on the Internet anymore, can they?—was a person he met online. At a forum, actually. Sasuke's quite forgotten what it was exactly they had been discussing, but he remembered having a heated debate with the guy over the merits of Terrans and how Zergs were "definitely" much better.

The idiot wouldn't give up, no matter how wrong he was.

Then again, Sasuke had eventually come to know that that was the way he was—he'd known him for practically five years now after all… and he had to admit, he chatted with him quite a bit.

What could he say? Naruto was an interesting person.

He grinned evilly at no one in particular.

And he was a person who liked over-reacting.

Sasuke very nearly considered giving Naruto a blow-by-blow recap of what happened in that cave… (with a few added extras, of course)

… if only he weren't trying so hard to _forget_ it.

But… he was pretty certain the boy's reaction would be beyond amusing.

OoO

Naruto sighed impatiently upon discovering that Sasuke, his online friend, was not online.

He didn't know why he was even looking for him.

Seriously. What was the point?

The guy did absolutely nothing but insult his intelligence… and for god's sake, Naruto wasn't _that_ stupid. He could at least tell when someone was insulting him… most of the time.

Sort of.

So, why in the hell was he looking forward to talking to—

Naruto's heart skipped a beat—er, that was weird—when _theAvenger­_ went online.

OoO

Sasuke smiled to himself upon seeing the familiar screen name, _na12uto_, pop-up in greeting.

Maybe, just maybe, Sasuke _should_ seriously consider freaking the boy out…

… Nah.

OoO

_ Oy! Sasuke!_

_ Yo._

_ You won't believe what happened this weekend!_

_Owari!_


End file.
